How to Get a Message Delivered to High School Students

By Kathleen Barth , ad delivery expert.

When I applied to the university, nothing was online. Even the Common App was downloaded and sent to the school via snail mail. Schools reached me the same way—brochures delivered to my house or to my college counselor.

Things have changed. If you need to deliver a message to high school students, adjust your marketing strategy to reach students where they are, identify who they are, and determine when they’re ready to take the next step.

Where to deliver messages

Current high school students tend to move to social media platforms as soon as their parents adopt them. The place to reach their parents is not likely to be where the place to reach students.

For example, Facebook is the least used platform by Gen Z-- 19% of Gen Z visit once a month, compared to 32.7% of Millennials.

Snapchat is the leading platform for Gen Z, with over half of monthly users falling into that demographic. TikTok and Instagram follow it.

Don’t send your message out into the abyss, find your students where they already live. And think beyond social! The majority of Gen Z check their email multiple times a day, they’ll see your communications there too.

Who will receive your message?

It’s unlikely that you’ll gain traction by sending info out to every 17-19-year-old potential undergraduate in the US. No matter what type of school you are—large, small, state, private—the entire country is unlikely to attend.

Consider where your students might be physically. Are you mostly a commuter school? Do your students tend to be in-state or out-of-state? When building the audience for your messaging, think local.

Also, keep in mind that students under 18 will have minimal targeting options for advertising. There are rules around how social platforms can target minors, and hyper-focused options (such as “16-17 years old,” “living in Illinois,” “soccer player”) will not often be available. However, this is platform-dependent.

If you can’t reach these specific students, try to reach their parents, who won’t be curtailed by these rules. These platforms tend to know who is a parent of a student seeking an institution.

When will messages be delivered?

In previous roles, I did marketing for movies and TV. The rule used to be that you’d start advertising 3 months ahead of a theatrical release. Then it became 2 months, then 1. By the time streaming dominated, most studios chose not to advertise their streaming originals until they were available to watch.

In a fast-paced ecosystem, there’s less planning and patience. If you need students to visit in the summer, don’t ask them to RSVP months in advance. Stress the urgency—if you apply now, you’ll get a partial scholarship at this very moment. It’s not too different from a Black Friday Sale—this deal is going soon!

At 3E, we add triggers to all messages delivered to prospective students. It is modern marketing.

Students who may not be considering your school could be enticed to apply and find that it’s the perfect fit for them. If you give them the opportunity to wait they may not give your school a chance.

For more on how we deliver and in 360, connect with me, or visit 3Enrollment.com.

Kathleen Barth is an expert in digital marketing, with over 10 years of experience. See all of our difference makers. Let's work together to deliver your next class.